Train Of Thought
by Cookiekitten
Summary: It wasn't the same as a Grand Festival, but May was willing to bet that the Pokémon Musical and PokéStar Studios would be worthwhile ventures. And, of course, the best way to travel around Unova would be to grab a ride on the Battle Subway. Sequel to Rivalry Cruise. Contestshipping, Festivalshipping


**Hey guys. Sorry for the wait. I've been busy with college, which is apparently interchangeable with 'I've been busy being dead for the last few years.' xD**

**Each chapter of this story will encompass a day of May and company's travel through Unova. How many days will there be? I haven't decided yet, but we'll be visiting Nimbasa City, the PokéStar Studios, and a bunch of other places. The Subway Bosses will also be recurring characters, because they're too awesome not to be. Frankly, this will have a much looser plot than Rivalry Cruise and will probably be more of a companion piece than a literal sequel, but we'll still have fun along the way.**

**Also, if you haven't already read Rivalry Cruise, I'd recommend that you at least read the epilogue so you know how May came to be in Unova.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon.**

* * *

"You're late," were the first words out of May's mouth when she came face-to-face with a boy about her own age, with green hair and a red rose clutched in one hand. Though her arms were crossed and voice aloof, she was failing miserably at keeping the wide grin off her face. Drew, in response, merely rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, well, of course you arrived earlier, May—you got to hitch a ride on that Mistralton Gym Leader's private plane. I'll bet you were in the sky doing barrel rolls before the rest of us mortals even got through security," he retorted with a smirk. Then, more irritatedly, he added, "And I was kind of hoping for a more sympathetic greeting than just '_you're late_,' considering the torture I had to go through in order to get here. On the plane, I had to sit between Harley and Soledad. _For_ _eleven hours_. Don't you feel bad for me just thinking about it?"

The brunette paused. "Well, it could have been worse..."

"Are you joking? What could have possibly been worse than that?"

"I suppose you could have been forced to sit between two hikers. Or Brock and a pretty girl. Or Team Rocket. Or even—"

Drew heaved a great sigh. "Fine, point taken." He shoved the rose in his hand in May's direction. "Take this, will you? Before I shred all the petals off after going insane from the horrific mental images you've given me."

Taking the proffered rose carefully, the female coordinator tilted her head to one side in question. "So, Harley and Soledad. Where are they?"

"Last I checked, Harley's back there berating some poor soul who mistook his Cacturne for something called a Maractus, and Soledad was trying to do some damage control." Drew shrugged. "Whatever a Maractus is, anyway. I don't know many Unova region Pokémon. ...Except for this one, actually. Check it out—" He reached into his pocket and pulled out a Pokéball, the red-and-white sphere cracking open with a flash of light to reveal a small lizard-like creature.

"_Sniiii_!"

Eyes wide, May crouched down to get a better view. "Looks a little like a Treecko," she murmured. When the Pokémon made a little sound of derision and turned its pointed snout away, the girl added, "A bit more snobbish, though."

"It's called a Snivy," Drew explained. "I thought since we're in Unova, it would be best to have at least one native Pokémon on my team. One of the perks of being a great coordinator, I guess—it's easy to get in contact with all sorts of breeders." He gave the Snivy a little pat on the head. "I like it already. It's green, like me!"

"It's an asshole like you, too!" The call came from a tall man with long purple hair and green clothes. "Grass-hair. Asshole. Hey, I just thought of an amazing new nickname—_Grasshole_!"

He began laughing maniacally.

Drew shot the man a glare while returning his Snivy to its Pokéball. "Tell me, Harley," he said in a deadpan voice, "not counting me, May, and Soledad, do you have any friends at _all_?"

"Oh, sure, like _you're_ Mr. Popular. And no, fangirls don't count," Harley retorted with a grin. Then he pulled May into a bone-crushing hug. Midway through twirling the girl around like a Cacturne-themed ballerina, however, his eyes widened in mock horror. "Your clothes, hon... they're _orange_."

May nodded cautiously. "Um, yeah. Is that... a problem?"

"Of course it is! I brought my Mayley outfit, but it's _red_! We aren't going to match!" he wailed.

This, of course, prompted Drew to nod in approval. "Oh, thank Arceus. That's a load off my mind."

Fortunately for everyone in the vicinity, Soledad then took the time to run up to the group and grabbed both Drew and Harley by the sleeves like an overworked babysitter. "No fighting, you two," she chided with a sigh. Rather than protesting, the male coordinators nodded and flashed nervous, disarming smiles, which gave May the suspicion that several arguments had already threatened to break out between the two during their trip to Unova. The red-haired woman smiled. "Good to see you again, May. And Harley, that boy who didn't recognize your Cacturne is probably scarred for life now, I hope you realize."

"Oh, I'm sure he'll get over it, hon. Being terrified builds character, you know?"

Soledad rolled her eyes in a good-natured way. "Well, I sure hope so. Anyway, since we're all here, shall we board the train?"

* * *

"Thank you for riding the Battle Subway today." The comment came from one of the conductors, a young man with gray sideburns and a black, striped uniform. He looked over the paper May had received from Skyla, his expression not changing from its stoic frown. "You four are guests of the Mistralton Gym Leader, is it? That's impressive. She doesn't let just anyone ride on her planes."

Another man walked into the subway car, identical to the first except for the color of his uniform, which was white, and the wide grin on his face. "I am Emmet. Your story checks out, so we'll waive the train fare for the duration of your stay!"

The frowning conductor nodded. "Right, then. I am Subway Boss Ingo. My brother, Emmet, is also a Subway Boss, as you may have guessed. Your fees are waived, but as I mentioned earlier, the train we are on is called the _Battle_ Subway..."

"I am Emmet. And because we are on the Battle Subway, it is traditional to battle. Easy, no?" his twin finished happily.

"So, we have to battle the two of you?" Drew asked.

"The two of us? Not yet. Maybe after your group has obtained... twenty wins on our subway. There are four of you, so double battles would be best." Emmet offered the group a cheerful bow. "I am Emmet. Follow the rules. Safe driving! Follow the schedule. Everybody smile! Check safety. Everything's ready! Aim for victory! All aboard!"

Ingo tipped his hat. "We always look forward to seeing the battling skills of those not from Unova. Teamwork is key to success. Will you go on to victory or defeat? We will send in your first challengers shortly. All aboard!" And with that, the two conductors walked through the sliding doors of the subway car and out of sight.

There was a short silence among the four coordinators. Then Harley said, "Guys, I may be completely mistaken, but I _think_ that man's name is Emmet."

Drew didn't even bother to hide the sarcasm from his voice. "Oh, really? What tipped you off?" There was a sudden jolt that cut off any further comment he was going to make—the train had begun to move.

Soledad glanced outside at the now moving scenery. Then she sat on one of the seats and turned back to the other three. "So, it sounds like we're doing double battles here. May, I assume you and Drew will be pairing up?"

Crossing his arms and half-heartedly pouting, Harley joined her on the seat. "You see, hon, if you hadn't changed your outfit to that ridiculous orange, then we could have been a color-coordinated team! And that gaudy green bandana, seriously?"

"Says the guy who dresses like an anthromorphic cactus. No offense to Cacturne, of course," May shot back with a grin. "Besides, you and Soledad have much better teamwork. And by 'teamwork' I mean 'ability to work together without having pointless arguments about cookies.'"

Fortunately, Harley's cry of "_Are you insulting my cookies again?_" was interrupted as the doors of the subway car slid open once more, revealing two new trainers: a female Pokémon breeder and a young boy.

"Let's have a fun match—" the breeder began, but she was cut off as the boy jumped forward and pumped his fist into the air with a yell. "I like shorts! They're comfy and easy to wear! Do _you_ like shorts?"

Harley managed to stifle his laughter by slapping one hand over his mouth. "Well, on second thought, Soledad and I are just fine sitting this battle out."

Drew heaved a long-suffering sigh, before releasing his Snivy from its Pokéball. May followed with Skitty, while the breeder and shorts-boy sent out a Sandile and Minccino, respectively.

"Good luck!" Soledad said encouragingly.

Harley, on the other hand, called out, "Go for it, grasshole!"

The green-haired boy whipped around in disbelief. "Don't call my Pokémon that!"

"I wasn't referring to your Pokémon!"

May slapped her forehead. "...This is going to be a _long_ ride."

* * *

**Short chapter, but that's because we're just getting things started. I hope characterizations are okay, because it's been a long time since I wrote Rivalry Cruise.**

**Anyway, we'll be heading to Nimbasa first. :D  
**


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